Systems, methods, and media for providing and/or obtaining information associated with a barcode

ABSTRACT

In some embodiments, methods for providing information associated with a barcode are provided. The methods including receiving barcode information and a user identifier from a mobile device; sending the barcode information to at least one content provider; receiving content information related to the barcode information from at least one of the at least one content provider; retrieving layout information from a database based on the user identifier; aggregating the received content information to form aggregated content information, wherein the layout of the aggregated content information is based on the retrieved layout information; and sending the aggregated content information to the mobile device. In some embodiments, methods for obtaining information associated with a barcode are provided.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application is a continuation of application Ser. No. 11/168,806,filed Jun. 28, 2005, which claims the benefit of provisional applicationNo. 60/587,250 filed Jul. 14, 2004, each of which is hereby incorporatedby reference herein in its entirety.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates generally to the field of systems capableof managing the interaction between vendors and end users. Morespecifically, the present invention provides a gateway for mobiledevices which provides quick access to various information and contentfrom different vendors.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Many systems currently exist which use an input to access differentonline resources. The most common example of such a system is a searchengine such as Yahoo, Google, AltaVista, etc. Search engines allow usersto search one or more databases using different combinations of searchterms and Boolean connectors. The results are usually displayed in alist form, with the most relevant results at the top of the list. Thesesearch engines provide quick access to information. However, using suchsystems it is often difficult to access specific information. Forexample, if a user is looking for information on a particular person orproduct type, the search engine will return every instance of the searchterm. It may take the user a long period of time to sift through theinformation and find the specific link or information the user waslooking for.

Recently, search engines have also become available for mobile deviceswhich have Internet access. The user can use the keypad on the mobiledevice to type in keywords and search the Internet much like a userwould on a computer. However, due to the small sized screen and the vastamount of search results, it is usually even more difficult to siftthrough the results on the mobile device than on a computer.

Simple database systems also currently exist which use an input term toproduce one or more outputs. An example of such a system is the barcodescanning terminal and register used at most shopping centers. As thecashier scans the different products in each consumer's shopping cart,the barcode scanning terminal uses a database to associate each barcodewith a price, item name, and/or item description. The register then usesthis information to compute the total of the purchase. This systemallows the checkout process to be extremely streamlined and efficient.However, the database requires much maintenance since every type of itemin the store must be included in the database. This can lead to anextremely large database which requires a great deal of maintenance. Forexample, the database needs to be updated each time the store adds a newitem or changes an item's price.

Currently, there are systems available which can be used to link printedbarcode information directly to online content using barcode scanners.These systems typically function by using the scanner to scan thebarcode, connect the scanner to a computer, upload the barcodeinformation to a server, search a barcode database to retrieveinformation, and send the information back to the mobile device. Sincemost mobile devices are not associated with an add-on barcode scanner,these systems have not yet been widely adopted. Also, these systemssuffer from the burden that each barcode needs to be in the database inorder for the system to function.

With the advent of camera phones and other similar mobile devicesequipped with digital cameras, technology has been developed to decodebarcodes from digital images. For example, a system for decodingbarcodes on mobile devices from digital images is disclosed in U.S.patent application Ser. No. 10/757,095. This allows camera phones to beused as mobile barcode scanners. Therefore, camera phones can now beutilized with systems which link printed barcode information directly toonline content.

Therefore, there clearly exists a need for a system which links userswith mobile devices equipped with a barcode scanner or digital camera toonline content without the burden of maintaining a large and extensivebarcode database. Such a system would allow user's quick and reliableaccess to online content with minimal cost to the supplier and/orvendor.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Systems, methods, and media for providing and/or obtaining informationassociated with a barcode are provided. For example, in someembodiments, methods for providing information associated with a barcodeare provided. The methods including: receiving barcode information and auser identifier from a mobile device; sending the barcode information toat least one content provider; receiving content information related tothe barcode information from at least one of the at least one contentprovider; retrieving layout information from a database based on theuser identifier; aggregating the received content information to formaggregated content information, wherein the layout of the aggregatedcontent information is based on the retrieved layout information; andsending the aggregated content information to the mobile device.

Also, for example, in some embodiments, methods for obtaininginformation associated with a barcode are provided. The methodsincluding: obtaining barcode information from a barcode; sending thebarcode information and a user identifier to a server; receivingaggregated content information from the server including at least onereference to content related to the barcode information from the serverwherein the at least one reference to content is associated with atleast one content provider and wherein the layout of the aggregatedcontent information is based on the user identifier; displaying theaggregated content information on a screen; receiving a selection ofcontent of the content referenced by the at least one reference tocontent included in the aggregated content information from a userinterface; and sending an indication of content selected by theselection of content to the server.

The present invention discloses a system and method for a mobile gatewaywhich is used to manage and distribute information scanned from mobiledevice users to vendors. The system utilizes a mobile device equippedwith a barcode scanner or digital camera, at least one item with abarcode, a wireless network, a server having a plurality of differentdatabases (e.g., a user database and a vendor database), and a pluralityof vendors and/or content providers. The mobile device may be any devicecapable of transmitting data over the wireless network such as a cellphone, a camera phone, a personal digital assistant, etc.

Barcodes compatible with the present invention are usually found onproducts or in advertisements. However, it should be apparent to oneskilled in the art how the barcode could be any one or two-dimensionalbarcode from a symbology including, but not limited to, UPC-A, UPC-E,ISBN, RSS-14, RSS-14E, RSS-14L, Interleaved 2 of 5, EAN/JAN-8,EAN/JAN-13, Code 39, Code 39 Full ASCII, Code 128, PDF417, QR Code, DataMatrix, and/or proprietary two-dimensional codes.

The wireless network may be any network capable of transmittinginformation wirelessly between a mobile device and a computer and/orother mobile device. For example, the wireless network could be acellular network, satellite network, Bluetooth network, Wi-Fi network,etc.

To use the system, a user first scans the barcode using the mobiledevice. The user may scan the barcode either using a barcode scannerattached to the mobile device or by using the digital camera attached toor embedded in the device. If the user elects to take a picture of thebarcode, it may be decoded optically on the device. A system fordecoding barcodes on mobile devices from digital images is disclosed inco-pending U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/757,095, which isincorporated herein by reference. The user could also decide to take apicture of the barcode and send the snapshot or the raw dataconstituting the image to the control center to be decoded on a serverinstead of the handset (see U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/796,153,which is incorporated herein by reference).

After the barcode has been decoded, the barcode information and a useridentification number are sent to a server via a wireless network. Inthe case where the barcode is decoded by the server, the user will sendthe user identification number and either the snapshot or the raw dataof the barcode image. The server then uses the transmitted useridentification number to look up the user's preferred vendors using auser database. The user database associates each user identificationnumber with a list of preferred vendors. The server next parses thebarcode into its constituent parts if possible. For example, every UPC-Abarcode contains a manufacturer code, a product code, and a checksumdigit.

The manufacturer code, or other similar identifying information,contained within the barcode information is used to associate thescanned barcode with a list of vendors or content providers using avendor and/or content provider database. The server then transmits theentire decoded barcode to each of the vendors and content providers.Preferably, this step is accomplished by sending the data to thedifferent vendors' web services via an XML post.

Each vendor and content provider returns a list of options, and/ordetailed information related to the barcode to the server. Preferably,this information is transmitted back to the server via XML. The serveruses the information provided by the vendors/content providers togenerate a WAP page on-the-fly by aggregating the information into anewly formatted page. The WAP page, list of options, content, and/ordetailed information is then displayed on-screen. In a preferredembodiment, the server also utilizes information contained within theuser database to construct the WAP page. For example, the user databasemay contain layout and/or other information which the user haspreselected. The user utilizes the content of the page and/or number ofoptions to execute the desired transaction.

Therefore, it is an object of the present invention to provide a mobilegateway capable of supplying quick and reliable content via a dynamicWAP page to users without the burden of maintaining a large and staticproduct barcode database.

It is an additional object of the present invention to provide a mobilegateway in which the content from the vendors and/or content providersis sent to the mobile device via a newly generated WAP page.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a mobile gatewayin which the mobile device only receives content which has beenformatted by the server.

An additional object of the present invention is to provide a mobilegateway which sidesteps tedious data entry and poor web navigation onmobile devices.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a mobile gatewaywhich brings content and services to users with minimum requiredinteraction.

Yet a further object of the present invention is to provide a mobilegateway that has the possibility to work with many vendors and contentproviders that would be prioritized based on user preferences.

An additional object of the present invention is to provide the abilityto view information available on mobile devices which was previously notaccessible.

These and other objects of the present will be made clearer withreference to the following detailed description and accompanyingdrawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 depicts a system diagram showing the preferred setup of themobile gateway.

FIG. 2 depicts a flowchart showing the process used by the mobilegateway to provide content from vendors or content providers to users.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The following presents a detailed description of a preferred embodiment(as well as some alternative embodiments) of the present invention.However, it should be apparent to one skilled in the art that thedescribed embodiment may be modified in form and content to be optimizedfor a wide variety of situations.

With reference first to FIG. 1, shown is a system diagram depicting thesetup of the preferred embodiment of the present invention. To function,the system utilizes mobile device 101 equipped with barcode scanner or adigital camera 103, at least one item 105 with a barcode 107, wirelessnetwork 109, server 111, user database 113, provider database 115,vendors 117 a to 117 n, and content providers 119 a to 119 n. Mobiledevice 101 may be any device capable of transmitting data over wirelessnetwork 109 such as a cell phone, a camera phone, a personal digitalassistant, a web camera attached to a computer, etc.

Item 105 is preferably a product or other similar item of commerce.However, it should be apparent to one skilled in the art that item 105may be any object to which a barcode can be attached such as anadvertisement, a poster, a ticket, etc. Similarly, barcode 107 could beany one or two-dimensional barcode from a symbology including, but notlimited to, UPC-A, UPC-E, ISBN, RSS-14, RSS-14E, RSS-14L, Interleaved 2of 5, EAN/JAN-8, EAN/JAN-13, Code 39, Code 39 Full ASCII, Code 128,PDF417, QR Code, Data Matrix, and any proprietary two-dimensionalbarcode. Preferably, barcode 107 is a UPC-A barcode which is typicallycomposed of a manufacturer code, an item code, and a check digit.

It should also be obvious to one skilled in the art that barcode 107could be any machine-readable code, such as an RFID code. This wouldrequire only that digital camera 103 be replaced with a RFID reader. Therest of the system could still function utilizing the informationdecoded from the RFID code.

Wireless network 109 may be any network capable of transmittinginformation wirelessly between mobile device 101 and server 111. Forexample, the wireless network could be a cellular network, satellitenetwork, Bluetooth network, Wi-Fi network, etc.

Server 111 is equipped with user database 113 and provider database 115.User database 113 is a standard database which stores users'identification numbers, preferred vendors, and preferred contentproviders and is capable of being modified and updated in real-time.Provider database 115 associates each manufacturer code with a list ofcategories and vendors and/or content providers.

Vendors 117 a-117 n may be any one of a plurality of online retailers.Content providers 119 a-119 n may be any online provider of productioninformation or media content.

Next referring to FIG. 2, shown is a flowchart depicting the operationof the mobile gateway. To use the mobile gateway of the presentinvention, a user first scans barcode 107 using barcode scanner 103attached to mobile device 101 in step 201. Barcode 107 is then decodedin step 203. Barcode 107 may be decoded by barcode scanner 103 in avariety of ways. In the preferred embodiment of the present invention,barcode scanner 103 is a digital camera. A system for decoding barcodeson mobile devices from digital images is disclosed in co-pending U.S.patent application Ser. No. 10/757,095 entitled “System and method fordecoding and analyzing barcodes using a mobile device.” The user couldalso decide to take a picture of the barcode using barcode scanner 103and send the snapshot or the raw data constituting the image to thecontrol center to be decoded on server 111 instead of on mobile device101. Such a system is disclosed in co-pending U.S. patent applicationSer. No. 10/796,153 entitled “System and method for decoding barcodesusing digital imaging techniques.” Alternatively, barcode scanner 103may be a laser-based scanner which is integral to or attached to mobiledevice 101. Currently, laser-based scanners are the most commonly usedbarcode scanners. However, they generally lack the versatility ofoptical barcode scanners and can only usually decode a limited number ofbarcode symbologies.

After the barcode has been decoded in step 203, the barcode informationand a user identification number are sent to server 111 via wirelessnetwork 109 in step 205. In the case where the barcode is decoded byserver 111, mobile device 101 sends the user identification number andeither the snapshot or the raw data of the barcode image. Otherwise,just the decoded barcode number is sent. Server 111 then uses thetransmitted user identification number to look up the user's preferredvendors and content providers using user database 113 in step 207. Userdatabase 113 associates each user identification number with a list ofpreferred vendors. The server next parses the barcode into itsconstituent parts if possible in step 209. This step is generallyperformed when barcode 107 is a UPC-A barcode comprised of amanufacturer code, a product code, and a checksum digit.

The manufacturer code contained within barcode 107 information is usedby server 111 in step 211 to associate item 105 with a list of vendorsor content providers using provider database 115. Server 111 may alsoassociate the manufacturer code with a category of items including, butnot limited to, home furnishings, accessories, gifts, curtains/drapes,linens, house wares, china glass and silver, home lighting products,agricultural, farming, floral (non-food), alcoholic beverages, apparel,audio/video, automotive, building supplies, computer hardware, software,food, beverage, food service, furniture, general merchandise, health andbeauty products, healthcare, hobbies, crafts, sewing equipment,household and industrial chemicals, lawn and garden products, marineequipment and supplies, market research data, musical instruments,professional sound equipment, sheet music, office and school supplies,stationary, gift wrap, greeting cards, pet food and supplies, homeelectronics, major appliances, camera, binoculars, telescopes, powertransmission, books, magazines, holiday seasonal products, sport andexercise equipment, toys, games, tobacco, packaging materials,electrical components, meat, poultry, seafood, maintenance, repair, rawmaterials, produce, accessories and leather products, shoes, watches,costume and fine jewelry, industrial, and commercial.

Server 111 then transmits the entire decoded barcode to each of theappropriate vendors 117 a-117 n and content providers 119 a-119 m (asidentified in step 211) in step 213. Each vendor and content providerreturns content, a list of options, and/or detailed information toserver 111 in step 215. Server 111 then transmits the list ofvendors/content providers and/or options or uses the informationprovided by the vendors/content providers to generate a WAP pageon-the-fly by aggregating the information in step 217. The newly createdWAP page is specific to each user of the system. That is, the mobilegateway is capable of aggregating and formatting the information,content, and options from vendors 117 a-117 n and content providers 119a-119 m into a format that is easily viewed on the screen of mobiledevice. The WAP page, list of options, and/or detailed information isthen displayed on the screen of the mobile device in step 219. The userutilizes the list of vendors/content providers or option menu to choosea desired vendor/content provider in step 221. The user is thenconnected directly to the selected vendor or content provider. The usercan also utilize the WAP page to perform such actions as viewing amultimedia clip, purchasing the item related to the scanned barcode,etc.

The mobile gateway is also capable of saving the barcodes that a userscans in user database 113. These barcodes can then be accessed at alater time by mobile device 101 or by workstation 121. If a user electsto utilize workstation 121, the user will be able to access the samecontent using the stored barcodes that the user was able to accessutilizing mobile device 101. For example, a user could utilizeworkstation 121 to purchase an item related to a barcode previouslyscanned by mobile device 101.

While the foregoing embodiments of the invention have been set forth inconsiderable detail for the purposes of making a complete disclosure, itshould be evident to one skilled in the art that multiple changes may bemade to the aforementioned description without departing from the spiritof the invention.

1. A method for providing information associated with a barcode,comprising: receiving barcode information and a user identifier from amobile device; sending the barcode information to at least one contentprovider; receiving content information related to the barcodeinformation from at least one of the at least one content provider;retrieving layout information from a database based on the useridentifier; aggregating the received content information to formaggregated content information, wherein the layout of the aggregatedcontent information is based on the retrieved layout information; andsending the aggregated content information to the mobile device.
 2. Themethod of claim 1, wherein the aggregated content information comprisesat least one of a webpage, a wireless access protocol page, and a list.3. The method of claim 1, further comprising selecting the at least onecontent provider based on the barcode information and the useridentifier
 4. The method of claim 1, further comprising receiving anindication of content selected from the aggregated content informationfrom the mobile device and enabling communication between the mobiledevice and a content provider associated with the selected content 5.The method of claim 1, further comprising receiving an indication ofcontent selected from the aggregated content information from the mobiledevice and sending the selected content to the mobile device.
 6. Themethod of claim 1, wherein the content information relates to at leastone of multimedia information, books, apparel, electronics, and games.7. The method of claim 1, wherein the mobile device is at least one of acamera phone, a mobile phone, a PDA, a laptop computer, a smart phone,and a cellular phone.
 8. The method of claim 1, wherein the barcodeinformation is decoded from a barcode selected from the group comprisingUPC-A, UPC-E, ISBN, RSS-14, RSS-14E, RSS-14L, Interleaved 2 of 5,EAN/JAN-8, EAN/JAN-13, Code 39, Code 39 Full ASCII, Code128, PDF417, QRCode, Data Matrix, and RFID.
 9. A computer-readable medium containingcomputer-executable instructions that, when executed by a processor,cause the processor to perform a method for providing informationassociated with a barcode the method comprising: receiving barcodeinformation and a user identifier from a mobile device; sending thebarcode information to at least one content provider; receiving contentinformation related to the barcode information from at least one of theat least one content provider; retrieving layout information from adatabase based on the user identifier; aggregating the received contentinformation to form aggregated content information, wherein the layoutof the aggregated content information is based on the retrieved layoutinformation; and sending the aggregated content information to themobile device.
 10. The computer-readable medium of claim 9, wherein theaggregated content information comprises at least one of a webpage, awireless access protocol page, and a list.
 11. The computer-readablemedium of claim 9, the method further comprising selecting the at leastone content provider based on the barcode information and the useridentifier.
 12. The computer-readable medium of claim 9, the methodfurther comprising receiving an indication of content selected from theaggregated content information from the mobile device and enablingcommunication between the mobile device and a content providerassociated with the selected content
 13. A server for providinginformation associated with a barcode, comprising: an interface incommunication with a network; a memory; and a processor in communicationwith the memory and the interface; wherein the processor receivesbarcode information and a user identifier from a mobile device; sendsthe barcode information to at least one content provider; receivescontent information related to the barcode information from at least oneof the at least one content provider; retries layout information from adatabase based on the user identifier; aggregates the received contentinformation to form aggregated content information, wherein the layoutof the aggregated content information is based on the retrieved layoutinformation; and sends the aggregated content information to the mobiledevice.
 14. The server of claim 13, wherein the aggregated contentinformation comprises at least one of a webpage, a wireless accessprotocol page, and a list.
 15. The server of claim 13, wherein theprocess farther selects the at least one content provider based on thebarcode information and the user identifier.
 16. The server of claim 13,wherein the process further receives an indication of content selectedfrom the aggregated content information from the mobile device andenables communication between the mobile device and a content providerassociated with the selected content.
 17. The server of claim 13,wherein the process further receives an indication of content selectedfrom the aggregated content information from the mobile device andsending the selected content to the mobile device.
 18. A method forobtaining information associated with a barcode, comprising: obtainingbarcode information from a barcode; sending the barcode information anda user identifier to a server; receiving aggregated content informationfrom the server including at least one reference to content related tothe barcode information from the server wherein the at least onereference to content is associated with at least one content providerand wherein the layout of the aggregated content information is based onthe user identifier; displaying the aggregated content information on ascreen; receiving a selection of content of the content referenced bythe at least one reference to content included in the aggregated contentinformation from a user interface; and sending an indication of contentselected by the selection of content to the server.
 19. The method ofclaim 18, wherein the aggregated content information comprises at leastone of a webpage, a wireless access protocol page, and a list.
 20. Themethod of claim 18, further comprising purchasing the content selectedby the selection of content.
 21. The method of claim 18, wherein thesending an indication of the content selected by the selection ofcontent comprises communicating with a content provider associated withthe content selected by the selection of content.
 22. A mobile devicefor obtaining information associated with a barcode, comprising: ascreen; a user interface; a barcode scanner; and a processor incommunication with the screen, the barcode scanner, and the userinterface, wherein the processor: obtains barcode information related toa barcode scanned by the barcode scanner; sends the barcode informationand a user identifier to a server; receives aggregated contentinformation from the server including at least one reference to contentrelated to the barcode information wherein the at least one reference tocontent is associated with at least one content provider and wherein thelayout of the aggregated content information is based on the useridentifier; enables display of the aggregated content information on thescreen; receives a selection of content of the content referenced by theat least one reference to content included in the aggregated contentinformation from the user interface; and sends an indication of contentselected by the selection of content to the server.
 23. The mobiledevice of claim 22, wherein the aggregated content information comprisesat least one of a webpage, a wireless access protocol page, and a list.24. The mobile device of claim 22, wherein the sending an indication ofthe content selected by the selection of content comprises communicatingwith to a content provider associated with the content selected by theselection of content.
 25. The mobile device of claim 22, wherein thebarcode scanner is a digital camera.